1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a component transfer mechanism of an electronic component feeding apparatus for transferring electronic components along a transfer passage, to a component take-in mechanism of the electronic component feeding apparatus for stirring electronic components stored in a storage chamber in a bulk state and for taking the electronic components into a feeding passage one by one, and to a component separating mechanism of the electronic component feeding apparatus for separating the foremost electronic component from succeeding electronic components out of electronic components which are transferred in alignment along the transfer passage.
2. Description of the Related Art
Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. Hei 6-232596 discloses an electronic component feeding apparatus including a component transfer mechanism, a component take-in mechanism and a component separating mechanism.
The component transfer mechanism described in the above mentioned publication comprises an endless belt for transferring components, a ratchet mechanism for intermittently moving the belt, and a lever mechanism for driving the ratchet mechanism. According to this component transfer mechanism, an operation part of the lever mechanism is pushed, thereby operating the ratchet mechanism through the lever mechanism, the belt is intermittently moved by the operation of the ratchet mechanism, and chip components are transferred along a passage.
The component take-in mechanism described in the publication comprises a storage chamber for storing the chip components in a bulk form, a transfer tube for taking in the chip components and guiding them downward, a take-in tube vertically movably disposed outside of an upper portion of the transfer tube, and a lever mechanism for vertically moving the take-in tube. According to the component take-in mechanism, an operation part of the lever mechanism is pushed, thereby vertically moving the take-in tube through the lever mechanism, the components in the storage chamber are stirred by vertical movement of the take-in tube, and the chip components in the storage chamber are taken in an upper opening of the transfer tube one by one.
Further, the component separating mechanism described in the publication comprises an endless belt for transferring the components, a movable stopper disposed on a predetermined position on the belt, and a lever mechanism for moving the stopper forward and backward. According to the component separating mechanism, an operation part of the lever mechanism is pushed, thereby forwardly moving, through the lever mechanism, the stopper which is located at component-stop position, and the stopper is separated from the foremost chip component. This component separating mechanism is for separating the stopper from the foremost chip component, and is not for separating the foremost chip component from the succeeding chip components.
In the above-described apparatus each of the component transfer mechanism, the component take-in mechanism and the component separating mechanism is driven by the corresponding one of the lever mechanisms. Therefore, a structure of each of the lever mechanisms is prone to be complicated, and the apparatus itself is increased in size by the influence of the complicated lever mechanisms. Further, the existences and the positions of the lever mechanisms restrain and hinder the design, so that flexibility in design is lowered.